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A strong performance exploring the pain and desperation of a new mother.Summary
Rating
Excellent
Sophie Swithinbank‘s script explores the often-neglected struggles of mothers, particularly those experiencing mental health issues after childbirth. Her script poignantly portrays Mother’s (Phoebe Ladenburg) isolation, the lack of support systems, and the desperation that eventually leads to her incarceration.
Within the confines of prison, Mother readies herself for a visitor. Clearly nervous, she rehearses what she will say. The visitor is her daughter, whom she has not seen in over a decade. Mother is eager to share her story with her daughter – the story she wants both her daughter and us as the audience to understand and, importantly, believe. It is the story of how she ended up at the police station and the events that ultimately led to her prison sentence. Well, it’s her version of the story and she is desperate for her daughter to hear it.
As Mother tells her tale, we jump around in time, with a meta element woven throughout as Ladenburg directly addresses the audience and even picks out specific audience members. She also calls for the lighting and sound changes, often glancing and gesturing towards the tech station to signal these adjustments. She is always aware of and playing to her audience.
With nowhere to hide on a set of a single chair and three coat hooks, Ladenburg delivers a raw and emotional performance that lays bare the struggles of a mother on the brink. Ladenburg is more than up to the challenge, and she never lets us forget Mother’s humanity or her struggle, no matter how dark her story gets. She is adept at portraying both sides of a conversation. Mother skilfully engages with her visiting daughter, the police in an interrogation cell, a man in a nightclub, and a social worker. Despite the absence of these characters on stage, we never feel their presence is missing or that any side of the conversation is lacking.
Ladenburg effortlessly portrays Mother as totally relatable and with a gift for storytelling that shows charm and wit – which can make it difficult to distinguish between lines practised for her daughter and actual truth. As we discover that she was an actress, her rehearsed words and polished presentation take on a new dimension and this raises the question: how much of her story is genuine, and how much is a performance honed to present herself in the best possible light?
During all her troubles, as she interacts with social services and faces the threat of losing her daughter to care, Mother observes that “nobody cares about the mothers”. A social worker visits to investigate the care and well-being of her daughter, but no one is looking out for her – the mother, herself. Suffering badly after the birth of her daughter, Mother is alone with no family support; carrying all of her burdens alone and looking after a newborn. It is too much for her.
Interestingly, there is no sign that her time in prison has led to rehabilitation. We see her rehearsing her lines, so is this yet another role she plays? Mother’s rage and bitterness erupt when her ex’s mother, her daughter’s grandmother, is mentioned. It becomes clear that her prison sentence has not succeeded in rehabilitating her, which is an understated but powerful observation.
Mother has undoubtedly committed terrible acts yet her profound loss and desperation has gone unnoticed; no one reached out to help her. There were no welfare checks, no social services file opened for her. She feels eclipsed by her newborn, whom she often refers to as ‘the keeper of her body’. As she unravelled, the warning signs were tragically missed. Surrender avoids assigning blame, instead casting a stark light on the often-overlooked vulnerability of new mothers in crisis.
Performer and Co-Director Phoebe Ladenburg
Writer and Co-Director Sophie Swithinbank
Director Associate Nancy Medina
Producer Hannah Farley-Hills for HFH Productions
Surrender plays at Arcola Theatre until Saturday 13th July.
Further information and tickets can be found here.
